Legal Studies Unit 3/4
Everything you need to know about your
studies for next year!
Unit 3: Law Making
 This Unit consists of 3 areas of study (A.O.S.):

Parliament and the Citizen

The Constitution and the protection of rights

Role of the courts in law-making
A.O.S. 1: Parliament & the Citizen
 Covers the structure and role of parliament,
including its processes and effectiveness as a lawmaking body, describing why legal change is needed,
and the means by which change can be influenced.
A.O.S. 2 The Constitution and the
protection of rights
 Covers the role of the Commonwealth Constitution
in defining law-making powers within a federal
structure, the means by which law-making powers
may change, and the effectiveness of the
Commonwealth Constitution in protecting human
rights.
 You will be comparing the protection of rights in
Australia with the protection of rights in the U.S.A.
A.O.S. 3: Role of the courts in law-making
 Covers the role and operation of courts in law-
making, their effectiveness as law-making bodies and
their relationship with parliament.
 We will be going on an excursion to the courts in
semester 2.
Unit 4: Resolution of Justice
 This unit consists of 2 areas of study (A.O.S.):

Dispute resolution methods

Court processes and procedures, and engaging in
justice
A.O.S. 1: Dispute resolution methods
 Covers the effectiveness of institutions and methods
for the determination of criminal cases and the
resolution of civil disputes.
A.O.S. 2: Court processes and procedures, and
engaging in justice
 Covers the processes and
procedures for the
resolution of criminal
cases and civil disputes,
and the evaluation of
their operation and
application, and the
effectiveness of the legal
system.
Textbook
 The text for 2014 is “Key Concepts in Legal Studies Units
3 & 4” 2nd edition by Wilson, Smithies and Farrar
 This may be available to purchase as a second-hand copy
 You may like to purchase a study guide – the
recommended version is by Michelle Humphries and has
a hand-print on the front
Equipment/Stationery
 You will need either loose-leaf paper or a workbook
 You may be required to submit work in plastic
pockets
 You MUST always come to class equipped with pens
and paper; if there is some reason why you don’t
have your class resources speak to your teacher
Haven’t Done Legal Units 1/2?
 There is no requirement that you must have done
units 1/2 prior to doing units 3/4
 However, it is STRONGLY recommended that you
familiarise yourself with key terminology
 The glossary in the back of the text is an excellent
place to start
What Skills are Required?
 It’s not enough just to remember facts
 The emphasis in Legal Studies Units 3/4 is on
analysis and evaluation
 There’s a lot to remember so being organised and
revising past topics on a regular basis will help
What you WON’T be Learning!
 You won’t be studying lots of criminal cases – that’s
not a focus in units 3/4
Assessment
 Your end of year exam will make up 50% of your
overall assessment:

You will have 2 hours writing time and 15 minutes of reading
time to respond to approximately 13 questions, including one
10 mark question.

The exam will cover both units 3 & 4. The 10 mark question
can come from unit 3, unit 4 or a combination of the 2
Internal Assessment (SACs)
 Your SACs will make up the remaining 50% of your
assessment in this subject:



Unit 3: Outcome 1 on the Parliament and the Citizen makes up
25% of your internal assessment for the Unit, Outcome 2 on
the Constitution makes up 50% and Outcome 3 on Courts and
Law Making 25%.
Unit 4: Outcome 1 on Dispute Resolution Methods makes up
40% and outcome 2 on Court Processes and Procedures makes
up 60%
These SACs will be in the form of tests with the structure
mirroring the end of year exam.
Holiday Homework
 The first few pages of the text have been scanned and
are available in Moodle.
 Your task is to read the scanned pages and complete
the activities on page xix – questions 1-9. You
should have these ready to submit at your 1st class in
2015.
 Keep an eye out for interesting cases in the media
over the holidays!